


sweets, tea, and dreams.

by pxppy



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, Blood and Gore, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F!Byleth, F/F, Post-Time Skip, Spoilers, five second fluff, spoilers for edelgard's route really
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2019-08-15
Packaged: 2020-09-01 02:17:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20250535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pxppy/pseuds/pxppy
Summary: edelgard has a nightmare.





	sweets, tea, and dreams.

**Author's Note:**

> *spills tea because of my clown nose* ah, time to write.

_Part 3-_  
_New Dawn, Pegasus Moon._  
_Sweets, Tea, and Dreams._

_It has been nearly a decade since the unification of Fódlan, led by none other than Empress Edelgard. The Black Eagle Strike Force had disbanded shortly after the fall of the Immaculate One, with everyone going their separate ways. Even Hubert, who went on to marry Petra, had a family to call his own. Edelgard had one too, a relatively smaller one, composed only of her wife Byleth. As the two had defied the odds together, she was content with both her significant other and her empire, having achieved all major goals for the time being. However, to achieve such extreme goals at the cost of those once dear to her caused great strain to Edelgard. While the select few aware of her relationship believed that Byleth was able to soothe her troubles when the two of them ventured off in secret to enjoy the world that they had created, the demons from her past actions reappeared with the ones from her youth on occasion. Edelgard had ignored them for far too long, and she knew that unlike the Immaculate One, as strong-willed as she may be, she was no god. And she did not wish to be…_

❃❃❃

It was hard to breathe. The darkness of the cave brought with it nothing but a sense of dread and uncertainty. The cold it translated to had seeped into her pores and numbed all parts of her body. Like a seductress, it licked at her face and crept under her clothes, stripping her of both warmth and a sense of security. Edelgard wandered aimlessly in complete darkness, the rumbling from her stomach the only noise she heard aside from her frantic breaths. Her bodily weaknesses rendered her calculating and controlled face useless, her countenance now both confused and empty, devoid of any other emotion. She was like a fish that had come to terms with a solitary life in a tank, then woke up back all alone in the ocean. All she did was walk with no sense of time or direction. How long had she been walking for? For what purpose had she been walking? Such questions, she surmised, were pointless when she was absolutely parched. Licking her dry lips, opening her mouth to try and capture a lone drop of water, and trying to deny the thirst that overtook her senses and forced her to see things that weren’t there even when her surroundings were coated in thick black ink. Eventually, she fell onto her knees and started crawling, but she didn’t remember when. The fall was short-lived, but the burning pain from it that branded her had dominated her, controlling her actions by restricting her every move. She could no longer feel the floor with her hands, but she had almost fallen again while crawling because of how slippery it was at times.

When she finally crawled into a cold body of water, her first thought was to cup enough of it and take a sip. However, the cool, refreshing taste of nothingness that she had expected was replaced with an odd, salty and metallic taste. She spat it out immediately.

“What...is...?”

A light in the distance had appeared. A sudden urge taking over her, she mustered up all of her remaining strength to run towards it, only to trip over what she assumed to be a rock. With the heavenly light now illuminating the area around her, she was lying in a pool of blood. 

As if bloodied hands grabbed onto her legs and pulled her downward, she began sinking into the pool. Once the blood had reached her neck, she turned around only to be met with the corpses of her siblings who were barely recognizable. Some were only hunched over into their own puddles of blood, with chunks of flesh desperately trying to stay attached to their bodies and bones daring to creep out of their warm layers of skin. Others were now living spaces for insects like maggots, unwilling hosts bore blue lips or no mouth at all. Those without eyes stared right through her, her transparency making her doubt if she even existed or had the right to exist. If it weren’t for the crying voice of her older sister with no throat, she would have failed to make the connection.

The blood kept rising. Rather, she began to drown. When the blood eventually rushed into her nostrils, it stung. She would have held her head up, but she was struggling to resist the hands down below. The blood rose over her head frequently, and with whatever strength she had left she tried to stay afloat. She gasped for air, desperate for anything, only to swallow more blood. Her resolve wasn’t enough, her heart beating as fast as her mind was racing. She was unable to, but her cells screamed for oxygen. Where she was once cold, a wave of heat had come over her. Her vision had started to fail her, and she could barely think anymore. 

One of the corpses rose up, babbling nonsense. Upon the realization that it was her youngest sibling, accompanied by the overwhelming smell of blood, the only thing she could do was pray. But not to the goddess. 

Blood oozing out of her mouth, she cried,  
“Fa...Fa-“  
—  
A crash of thunder.

“...Father, who was killed for you!”

Edelgard now stood back on the battlefield ten years ago, standing over Dimitri with her axe Aymr. It was all coming back to her. Choosing this time to try and allow the thunder to drown out her thoughts, all it did was illuminate her weapon and the blood that complimented it so well. The melody of the rain did nothing to silence her worries and the droplets only replaced the need for real tears. She was still in shock, but feelings of regret and sadness welled up inside her as she stared at the groveling and obsessed Dimitri. He continued to speak.

“Of my stepmother, who was slain by her own daughter!” 

She closed her eyes, not wishing to relive this moment again. She was too weak to hold Aymr with her own strength, so her body was moving on its own. Her mind was racing. She had to keep a straight face and convince herself that his death was the only way she could save Dimitri from the cruel and twisted world destroyed by Crests. As the Empress, she had to remain strong. She did not have the luxury of turning away from her personal fears or closing her eyes to try and forget about the world’s problems. The thought of giving in to negative emotions that clashed with her ideals was unheard of if she were to become an able ruler. The bloodied hands guided her, reminded her that he was driven by revenge and there was no way to spare him. All was said and done, and she wore a crown stained with blood. 

“You will bow your head before all of the lives you trampled for your ideals before you die in misery!”  
This pained her. Thunder struck, and the purple sky illuminated the look of betrayal and hatred on his face. She steeled herself and readied herself to swing at Dimitri when suddenly everything faded to black.

Edelgard was out of it completely. Now weak and on the floor, focusing her weight on her sword to keep her kneeling steadily. She looked up only to see Byleth, Sword of the Creator raised with an emotionless look on her face about to strike at her. She was at a loss for words. The scene made no sense, for Byleth would never harm her, but that is exactly what she was experiencing. Byleth, the woman who thawed her otherwise frozen heart now stood before her, sword raised, about to destroy it. One of the first and only people she had lowered her barriers for was now going to kill her, having destroyed her defenses. Her anguish came in waves: first it was disbelief, then came the shortness of breath followed by never-ending rivers of sweat breaking free from her body, and finally the accentuation of her restless heart scared of what was to come, anticipating the final blow that would result in the floor being stained with her misplaced love. Her face contorted at the thought; disgusted and afraid, angry and crestfallen. Then, she heard Dimitri.

“Your ideals...you don’t even believe in yourself, do you? Everyone that died...”

The faces of students from the other houses appeared, one by one, standing and on the ground. They filled her peripheral vision. Their bodies were all fatally wounded. Ashe had an arrow going through his head, Ingrid with the Lance of Ruin poking out of her chest, and the rest were no better. 

“This is all your fault.”

Their cries grew louder. She couldn’t move, whispers along the lines of the weak trampling the strong locking her into place. Byleth was about to strike her. She heard Dimitri’s voice.  
“To the fires of eternity with you... El!”  
Then, Byleth—  
—  
“El!”

The cold hard floor was replaced with the softness of her bed. The silken mattress reminded her of a cloud, and like a cloud, she basked in the sun’s rays.

As cheesy as it sounded.

Byleth, who moments prior had lay right next to her, was now looming over her with a worried expression. Edelgard, with a shout, shot up and hit Byleth square in the forehead with her own.

“Oww...”

“B-Byleth-! Oh, forgive me!” She lightly kissed her forehead and then arched her eyebrows. The thought of kissing her Professor was something that always helped calm her down, even if it was something as small a gesture as a peck on the forehead.  
“...What are you doing awake at this hour?”

Byleth shook her head, hands on her forehead. “It’s fine, it’s fine,”  
The semi-shocked expression changed back to the worried one very quickly as she spoke.  
“El...do you want to go outside? You were screaming and crying again for the first time in ages... That’s what woke me up.”

She looked down, her visage clearly exposing the pain in her eyes. Byleth used to show little to no emotion, and at times that was still the case. Whenever she had nightmares that resulted in her kicking and bawling, Byleth somehow became the epitome of emotion. It puzzled her still, but she was grateful.

“Is...Is that so...”  
She no longer hid anything from her beloved teacher, not even her feelings of regret. This was not the first time it had happened, but Byleth looked equally as hurt. She turned to face their window, specifically at the moonlight that illuminated their room.

The room alone was fairly huge. While Edelgard insisted that their hidden house should be fairly average, Hubert wouldn’t allow it. They lived in a small castle, had a handful of local knights who patrolled the area on occasion, and a beautiful view of Brigid’s beaches. She stood up and stared out towards the sea that connected Brigid and Fódlan.

“El,” Byleth spoke. “If you’d like, go outside for a few minutes. I’ll join you in a bit.”

“I...would like that, actually.”  
Quietly tiptoeing around their cat, she opened the door and inhaled the smell of the seaside. In response to her desperate need for Byleth’s attention, a painful sense of longing overcame her.  
“As selfish as it sounds, please don’t keep me waiting. Don’t forget that I do enjoy your company, Byleth.”

“Yes, of course...” Byleth said as she stood up and rubbed her forehead again. She walked out of their room.

Edelgard stood on their patio, zoning off at the crescent moon. Her eyes lazily moved down towards the malevolent and magnificent sea, which made her nauseous as it reminded her of her dream and how helpless she felt. The waves crept towards her and dashed away with rhythmic ease, the continuous noise of it embracing and then shunning the shore, disappearing as more shells washed away and floated out to sea. The shells were like lifeless corpses. The start of the cycle was serene, the royal blue tide breathing and humming as if Byleth had bonded with the ocean through fishing so much that it had started to pick up some of her habits. The hum became deafening, more akin to the screams of the damned. The water lunged at her, hands being left in the sand whenever it retreated, then disappearing with the shells once the cycle reached its final stage. She could only endure two cycles.

Closing her eyes to ignore the ocean, her mind was aware that the water came in waves, with the ability to strangle and drag her down towards the ocean surface. She was sweating and began to feel dizzy, so she opened her eyes and opted to stare at the sand instead. She wiped her forehead and tried to steady her breaths once more, but when she looked at her hand it was covered in blood. Her eyes widened and she shook her head. She couldn’t think straight or breathe properly. If she remembered correctly, the sea was supposed to calm people.

_Sweat._

As she continued to stare out at the sea and her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw a silhouette by the water. Descending the stairs, she stared at the figure cautiously. The chance of it being a trespasser was more likely than it being an ally, considering neither of them had received a note detailing someone’s arrival. The crunch of her footsteps in the sand once she reached the bottom of the stairs was barely above a whisper, but the figure quickly turned around. All she saw painted on its face was death. No life was sensed from them, their visage cold and empty. Their eyes were as blue as the ocean, and its aura just as dangerous, empty and impassive. Before she could say anything, Byleth was heard walking down the stairs. Edelgard now hyper-alert and cautious of her surroundings, Byleth was actually extremely quiet. Anyone else would have to strain their ears to notice her footsteps.

“El, it’s me.”

Her blood ran cold.  
Edelgard felt the warmth leave her body. That glare was Dimitri’s, but she couldn’t make out his other eye. When Byleth placed her hand on her shoulder, it caused her to turn around. The warmth emanating from her soft yet calloused hand temporarily steadied her breaths. She had also flinched. Which Byleth stood before her?

“What are you looking at?” Byleth said, staring in her general direction. The emotionless gaze was on par with Dimitri’s, but it lacked the repressed hatred that seeped out of his soul. His lance became his mind, his thoughts silenced by the objective of revenge...remembering this had no purpose. Regardless, she couldn’t help herself.

“...The sea,” She spoke, choosing not to share what she truly saw with Byleth. Byleth might have promised to share all of her burdens when she proposed, but there were some burdens that Edelgard believed too much to handle or understand, even for someone as strong as Byleth. “My dreams reminded me of the past, you know.“

“The past? Hm…” She placed her hand on her chin.  
“Before you continue, can we go back inside? As much as I love seeing your gown flow with the wind, there’s something I want to show you.”

Sylvain’s influence was astonishing.

“Byleth, you know that in times like these I’d prefer the breeze to the bed.”

“Yes, but...”

“But?”

“But I’ll be in the bed,”  
Edelgard rolled her eyes.  
“And, truthfully, it will be better for both of us if we discussed this over some tea I prepared. It will help us stay calm, trust me.”

Edelgard sighed and turned towards the ocean, her eyes widened when she realized the figure was gone, but then she turned back towards Byleth. She didn’t want to admit it, but it had gotten cold.  
“It’s been years and I still can’t tell when you’re serious or teasing me during times like these,”  
Byleth was confused at what she meant, shrugging it off with a blank expression.  
“But I’ll have to refuse. I can’t feel at ease in the-eeere?!”

Byleth had picked her up bridal style and to Edelgard’s surprise had an oddly determined look on her face. For some reason, her grip around her waist was tighter than usual. It did not hurt by any means, but when she took note of the message in Byleth’s eyes she realized it was just something to remind her that she was there. She was _real._ Despite how flustered she was, she noticed that Byleth’s face was nothing like the Byleth she saw in her nightmare. It was obvious that her Byleth held her best interests in mind, going through with tedious actions like this in order to try and keep her spirits high. The other Byleth thought of nothing, presumably numbed by the war. She carried her up the stairs and back into their room. At that point Edelgard buried her head into her chest and was blushing, so Byleth let her down once she closed the door.

She directed Edelgard to sit back down in their bed before she left the room, then walked back in with their special tea set and a small tray of snacks. Byleth poured her some tea after she took a bite of strawberry jam. Deep down, Edelgard wanted a bite. She childishly wanted Byleth to feed her some of it, but she just smiled at the thought and took a sip of tea. She needed a distraction. Longed for one. 

“Oh? This isn’t bergamot.”

“You’re right, it’s chamomile. Something to help you go back to sleep. Mine has a bit of honey, though.” Edelgard pouted a bit at that, and Byleth smiled. No one else ever really saw them like this. 

“Now that we’re sitting and you’ve a nice warm cup of tea, can you tell me what’s on your mind?”

“Will this end with you all over me again?” She tried teasing her. 

“I was just inspecting your collar last time. You were about to make a big speech. You aren’t wearing a collar now.” She deadpanned. A failure.

“A fortnight ago, you-“

Dimitri. She noticed him out of the corner of her eye staring back at them. At her.

“I?” Byleth responded, unaware of what she’d been seeing and acting oblivious to what she had been referring to.

One by one, the students reappeared in the room, which caused her to hyperventilate again. The dark moonlight illuminated the hulking figure and the undead specters that haunted her thoughts. Their cold, lifeless bodies caused them to freeze as well. The only warmth she felt was not from the nectar that coursed through her veins, but from the lives on her hands. Her hands started shaking as she took another sip of tea, just watching them in silence. She could have sworn that blood stained her teacup. When Dimitri stepped towards the two of them and reached his hand out, as if he were about to grab Byleth, she threw her cup at him and screamed. It went through him and shattered when it hit the wall.

“You’re not real! What could you possibly _want_ from me?!”

Byleth shot up in surprise and stared at the wall, then walked towards it and picked up a shard of glass.

“That was our wedding gift from Ferdinand...” She mumbled.

Byleth walked right through Dimitri when she did so, only causing more frustration to build up within Edelgard. Why had this apparition appeared before her and her alone? Byleth turned towards her with a concerned look. She was serious now.

“What were you dreaming about?”

She sighed; there was no point in trying to hide it after her uncharacteristic outburst. “It was...odd. At first, I was in a dark place. I assumed that this was the same dream I always had about my family desperate for light and suffering in the darkness. But this time I was weak, dehydrated, and getting dragged down into what I believe to be a pool of blood.”

“Did you drown?”

“No, when I was fully submerged I somehow ended up back in the Tailtean Plains. It was right before I had slain Dimitri.” She grimaced.

“El...”

“I didn’t understand-”

Remembering what happened next, she felt unsure whether or not to tell Byleth about what she saw. Byleth had killed her with her own sword, but she knew that the event was simply unrealistic. So why could she not trust her teacher—no, her _wife_—now, of all times, when she had already accepted her into her heart and needed her the most? 

“At the time, the faces of my former classmates appeared around me. They were just...staring. Weeping. Crying out as my sister had. And it’s all...it’s all my fault.” Still shaking, tears had silently fallen down her cheek. Byleth’s eyes widened for a moment. Edelgard seldom cried.

“Edelgard,” She spoke in a reassuring tone and took her hands in hers. “What you did...was for the benefit of future generations to come. Everyone who died was used by the Church. And where is the Church of Seiros now?”

“But-“ She whimpered.

“And there were people from the other houses who supported you. Did you not see Lysithea last week? What about Sylvain, who helped you defeat Dimitri?”  
She remembered seeing Ingrid. “He must feel regret too. But he knows that what we did was the right thing, and everyone’s lives have improved because of it. You haven’t doubted yourself like this for a while, especially when it comes to the war.”

“But was there...could there have been another way to go about the fall of the Church? Must I have had to kill everyone?” She started to break down weeping at the hopelessness consuming her otherwise iron will and steady resolve. Her eyes were flooded with tears, her pupils practically drowning. Foreign thoughts invaded her mind as trails of blood emerged from her clenched fists. Byleth closed her eyes and continued to speak tenderly, not truthfully.

“You might have been fueled by the flames of war at the time, but Rhea was no better. Do you remember what she did to the innocents in her final battle? How she used Dimitri and the Kingdom? Everyone that wished to help you, did. You didn’t kill blindly. And, El...”

Edelgard looked at her. Regret decorated her face, with drops of sadness sprinkled onto her cheeks. Byleth gently cupped her cheek and stared at her in the eyes.  
“If you were wrong, I wouldn’t have joined you.” Edelgard nodded at that while Byleth wiped away her tears. “The ends don’t always justify the means, but what you accomplished couldn’t have been done without bloodshed. All that matters now is that Fódlan is united and peace is only disturbed by angered nobles and those who slither in the dark. That, and there’s no way to change the past. We can’t turn back the clock.”

“Of course. I...I guess you’re right. You always know what to say. And do. I’m sorry about the teacup, by the way. It was...foolish of me.”

“It’s alright. I’ll clean up. You should try to go back to sleep.”  
Byleth tucked Edelgard in, kissed her forehead, then walked back to the wall where she started picking up the rest of the shattered teacup. She tried to stay as quiet as possible, but sleep was never an option. 

Edelgard closed her eyes but couldn’t fall asleep. It was as if Dimitri was still staring at her, and he was. His presence alone denied her of any sleep, seeing that he was a creature from the abyss. He was a wandering demon that emerged from the depths of her soul and cesspools of her mind only to torment her. His eye was no more than a bottomless pit filled with the horrors of loss and regret and his hands were like the jagged claws of an untamed animal. If he were slowly sapping away at her soul, she wouldn’t have known. She died as a child, was revived by Byleth, and now rotted away for living past what the Goddess intended. Taciturn and resentful, Dimitri simultaneously emitted a murderous aura. Even when she forced her eyes shut she was still aware that his sharp gaze bore through her, cutting her into pieces and relishing at the thought of seeing her sprawled across the floor, her blood and guts his parting gift to both her and Byleth. She needed to ignore him. Not wanting to distract Byleth from cleaning, she waited with her eyes closed until all the noise from cleaning stopped completely and she felt Byleth sit down next to her. She opened her eyes to find her eating the rest of the strawberry jam. 

“You’re still awake?” She whispered. There was a piece of jam on her lip.

“Can I have a bite?”

“We should save sweets for the morning, El.”  
Edelgard groaned.  
“I can bake you a cake tomorrow. Bernadetta taught me how to when we visited her last month.”

“Yes, but I want it now. Byleth, just a spoonful will suffice. Do not make the _Emperor_ beg.”

“How scary. I refuse. You have to sleep, Edelgard. It’s the only thing that can help you right now.”

“Professor...”

Byleth placed the jam down on the table next to her and gave Edelgard a kiss. She flinched again.  
“That’s the only sweet thing you’re getting tonight, alright? What would help you fall asleep?”

“Your presence alone should suffice.”

“Alright.”  
Byleth crawled under the covers and wrapped her arms around Edelgard, bringing her into a warm embrace. She responded by burying her head in her chest again. The feeling of another body grounded Edelgard and helped ease her mind. Taking deep, relaxed breaths, she smelled a hint of lavender. It drowned out the underlying smell of metal. 

“Did Mercedes gift you her perfume on your birthday?”

“Shh...El, don’t speak.”

Edelgard simply nodded at this and focused on nothing but her breathing and the lavender scent. It calmed her down. Dimitri was gone, but Byleth was there. They had carved a new world together. She chose her, and she stayed by her side. Her Byleth. 

Byleth had cupped her cheek once again, now guiding her vision back towards her. Edelgard stared longingly into Byleth’s eyes, but the undertones of despondency were as clear as day to Byleth. The two of them were as close as they could be to each other, with no one there to steal the other or ruin the moment. Serenity was slowly taking over the grief-dependent atmosphere, yet all Edelgard could do was stare into the eyes of her teacher. The kisses earlier were just pecks, small gestures warranting smaller reactions. As their faces moved closer towards each other, the area around her now laden with the scent of lavender, what came next was instinctual. Under normal circumstances they should have just briefly kissed each other right then and there, whispering sweet nothings to each other as they resigned themselves to their dreams, but something had been lurking within Edelgard. The unbearable hunger she had experienced in the cave was now resurfacing in reality as a painful ache. In a flash, Edelgard now hovered over Byleth. The lion pounced its prey. An unfamiliar warmth enveloped her whole being upon the realization that this was her escape. This was exactly what she wanted.

_Wasn’t it?_

Pressing onto Byleth, she leaned down towards her ear and lightly bit her earlobe. She left a trail of kisses down her neck, allowing her lips to lightly graze her skin as Byleth lay in silence, subtle hitches in her breath and involuntary jerks only contributing to her endless hunger. She sucked at her skin, Byleth’s inaudible moan the equivalent to shoveling coal into a steam engine. Byleth moved as little as possible, only holding onto Edelgard and wrapping her legs around her once she remembered how to move. She stopped nibbling at her neck to stare Byleth in the face, her hands waltzing around her body and slipping up her shirt. Lust glazed over her eyes and her cheeks flushed a dark red as she cupped Byleth’s left breast. She inched closer towards her face until there was once again little to no distance in between them. The setting was simply arousing; all she saw was Byleth’s face, once a blank canvas now drenched with the colors of sin, the background blocked out by locks of her silver hair that cascaded onto the bedsheets and intertwined with Byleth’s messier mane. All she felt was Byleth’s breaths that challenged her own. All she heard was the drums of war thumping in her bosom, quickening by the second. All she smelled was lavender.

Byleth clutching onto her, soft and warm lips gently brushed against each other until passion and desperation allowed her tongue to delve into Byleth’s yielding mouth. The insistent serpent continued to ravage her in bursts, only growing more feisty when Byleth clung to her harder and moaned more audibly. Even though she was in control, Byleth’s current submissiveness sent waves of ecstasy throughout her body, electrifying her nerves and baiting the predator inside of her. She was well aware that Byleth could turn this around at any moment and her bodily conquest would be over. While she still remained on top, she yearned to rip her clothes off and envelop every fiber of her being. Before she could deflower the rose from her garden, Byleth broke the kiss and spoke.

“El...Sweets can wait until tomorrow morning, but for something savory you would have to wait until after dinner.”

Edelgard glared at her, who just kept smiling softly despite her frenzied breaths and traitorous body that begged for her to continue. She slumped down and her muscles loosened since her high was over. Was she being serious or was she teasing her? Not wanting to think about it or argue, she groaned and nestled back into her chest, drinking in the scent of lavender until her heart rate finally slowed down. It felt like ages of silence had passed. The longer she waited lying still, the more Byleth’s effect started to wear off. For a moment, she started shaking. Byleth ran her fingers through her hair and took a deep breath. 

“...In time’s flow...” Byleth had started singing softly, crooning to her. Sleep hovered over Edelgard. It looked so enticing to her. She wished to let it take her away.  
All of this was so intoxicating. A wonderful diversion.  
“On the swift river’s drift, broken memories...”  
She’d much rather prefer drowning in it than in the pool of blood from earlier. Yet she didn’t want to drift off just yet. She was enjoying Byleth’s soothing-  
“A-Alight.” Byleth squeaked. Both of them were stunned. “Ah...well now, we both know I’m not much of a singer.”  
-voice. Said voice had just cracked terribly, eliciting a chuckle from Edelgard. She looked up at Byleth, who wore an embarrassed expression and was as red as she was just moments ago. How was this possible? It mattered not.

“Well, anyway,”  
Edelgard cocked her head.  
“If you are still being haunted by your demons, whether they’re my old students or Dimitri-”

“Wh...When did I say-”

“Then you should try to make amends.”

“Make amends? How could I possibly...?”

She waited for a response, but when she heard a small snore from Byleth, she sighed. She closed her eyes and, with the help of Byleth’s warmth, eventually drifted off to sleep.

“_As your teacher, I cannot allow myself to spell things out for you..._” She whispered.

She stood in what could only be described as limbo. She saw nothing, heard nothing, and felt nothing. She just stood there, staring at the floor until she heard him. Saw him.  
Dimitri.

He did what he was doing earlier to Byleth, reaching his hand out to grab her. This time, her dagger was tucked away behind her. Her hand hovered over it. She could kill him once and for all, what was a little more blood to someone like her?  
Instead, she placed his hand in hers and put her other hand on his shoulder.

“If I am to make amends with myself...”  
Then, she started dancing with him.  
It was hard, but they danced the waltz together. Nothing was spoken and she avoided eye contact with him until he stepped on her.  
“Wrong foot, Dimitri...”  
When she spoke, she realized her hair was now brown. She looked back at him only to see he was a child. They were children, waltzing in limbo to nothing but their own regrets. No one spoke anything else. She didn’t know what she was feeling, if she felt anything at all, but once the blackness of limbo turned into a blinding light that slowly engulfed the two of them, she felt lighter than before. She was not a crow and he was not a boar. They were clouds, basking in the sun.

When she woke up, she was alone in bed hugging nothing but a pillow. Lazily, she sat up and stretched.  
“Byleth?”  
She stood up and walked around. Byleth was nowhere to be seen.  
She poured herself a cup of tea, then sat back down on her bed.  
“Oh?”  
There was an opened envelope on the table, with a letter sticking out of it.  
The handwriting was Hubert’s. 

_“My liege,_  
_There have been numerous reports of suspicious activity in a nearby town. The accounts warn of odd behavior among the townsfolk. They appear to always stay indoors and most foreigners that enter the town do not leave. Some have also vaguely talked about nightly ceremonies. While not important, traveling merchants need to pass through the village in order to reach busy ports. There have already been a handful who have gone missing, so I urge you to investigate the matter._  
_While I believe you are fully capable of doing this task yourself, I have sent for a small group of knights to accompany you to the village. They are to arrive by sunrise tomorrow. Knowing you, I have also sent a map detailing where to go._

_ Please do not bother Her Majesty with something as trivial as this.”_

Edelgard ripped the note in half and sighed.  
“Hubert, what’s the point of a vacation if I can’t even enjoy it...”  
She walked back out into the porch and stared at the sea.  
“Well, it can't be helped at this point. She’ll be back, but-“  
The only thing she saw was the waves crashing against the shore.  
“‘Knowing you’, hm...  
Hubert, that's kind of offensive...”  
She smiled and took a bite out of a slice of strawberry cake.

Looking heavenward, the light still failed to reach her eyes.

❃❃❃

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading the whole thing!!! if you did, anyway
> 
> god posting this gave me 3 (three) anxiety attacks but edelgard is a queen and her and byleth give me butterflies and the ending left me unsatisfied so i just had to....babeys  
since im very new to this as this is the first piece i've published, any and all comments are appreciated, thank you!


End file.
